Southport, Queensland to Sydney Harbour, New South Wales

Leaving Southport

On Saturday 14^th December, we weighed anchor, called Seaway Tower, Southport and motored out to sea. There was less than 1m of swell and no breaking waves. Soon we had both sails flying and enjoyed a beam reach in sunny weather - perfect for our first sail for a while. We found the East Australia Current, which added about 2 knots to our speed over the ground. Our destination was Coffs Harbour in New South Wales. We signed on with Marine Rescue and called them on VHF at various points on our journey. This is an excellent voluntary service rather like a combination of the UK RNLI and Coastguard.

The jetty at Coffs Harbour

It was 165nm to Coffs Harbour and we completed the trip in less than 29 hours. We anchored in the well-protected bay near a long jetty. Later, we moved to one of the two free moorings.

East of England Westerly Owners

We stayed in Coffs Harbour for three nights waiting for a strong southerly blow to pass by. It was a great place with a marina close by, two laundrettes and shops. Large shopping malls were just a bus ride away. One afternoon we met up with fellow East of England Westerly Owners, Bill and Brenda, and enjoyed a beer and a chat sitting in the shade next to their VW camper van.

Retrieving the mast

On Wednesday 18^th December we were off again hoping to make Port Stephens, 177nm further south. There was still a fair bit of swell from the SE, but the winds were slowly coming round to the N and E. We called Marine Rescue Coffs Harbour to inform them of our intentions. At midday a whole school of dolphins played around the boat, some doing somersaults in pairs. It was lovely to see them but I couldn’t help thinking they might be warning us of strong winds to come.

Refuge Bay

Sure enough, by the evening we had taken down the mainsail and had the genoa poled out in a following wind. The current gave us 7.7 knots over the ground, but the swell and waves gave us a rocky rolly ride. We saw several large ships and another sailing vessel. By 0300 hours we had a rough and boisterous sea and in the morning we found our pressure cooker with our stew inside it upside down on the front cabin floor. Fortunately, only a bit of gravy had leaked out so we were able to eat the stew later.

Not good for swimming

We were very happy to motor into Port Stephens 29 hours after our departure from Coffs. We anchored in Nelson Bay where the three courtesy moorings were already taken. A dismasted yacht was tied to one of them. Steve from one of the other yachts stopped by and gave us useful advice on where to anchor in Sydney Harbour for the fireworks. Nelson was another great place with a marina nearby and a large Woolworths store just a few minutes’ walk away. We stocked up with food, I bought a Telstra SIM card and we filled up with water.

Fairy lights on Sal Darago

Another southerly blow passed by but we were able to leave Port Stephens in the afternoon for another overnight passage to Broken Bay 77nm further south. There were several large ships off the port of Newcastle drifting, presumably waiting to enter the port. One was right on our course and did not show up on our AIS until we were only two miles away. It was the end of my first night watch and I woke Jeremy 5 minutes early to help me. A grumpy Skipper came out to the cockpit and started taking bearings until MV Good Hope showed itself on our AIS and Jeremy was able to call them on VHF and find out which way they were drifting.

Putting up the Christmas tree

The wind died away in the small hours. We entered Broken Bay, just 18 miles north of Sydney Harbour and picked up a club mooring in Refuge Bay, having taken advice from the owner of a local catamaran. There were numerous, large jellyfish so no swimming for me. We knew from Sue and Dougie back in Coomera that Broken Bay led to Cowan Creek and the Hawkesbury River and it was a good place to spend Christmas. 

 

Returning from church

It was beautiful and most of it’s tree-lined, steep-sided bays had courtesy moorings which could be used for 24 hours. It was a peaceful place, the only down side being a lack of a mobile phone signal in most places and a very small number of villages with shops.

North Head entrance to Sydney Harbour

We spent a night in Yeoman’s Bay and shopped the next day at the well-stocked general store at Brooklyn. We met Ann and Nubert at the Lifeboat Seafood Restaurant nearby. They shared their wine with us and we enjoyed listening to their fascinating accounts of how they ended up in Australia from Europe.

Peter and Judy

Other bays we visited were Little Shark Rock Bay, Waratah Bay and Houseboat Bay. Christmas Eve was spent in Waratah Bay. We hiked uphill for an hour to Berowra to go to church at St Marks. After a short trip to the end of Cowan Creek at Bobbin Head, Christmas Day was spent in Houseboat Bay. We had a mobile phone signal so we were able to phone all our close relatives and wish them a Merry Christmas. This included Peter and Judy and that was how we came to be invited to cousin, Louise’s house at Avalon on Boxing Day.

Coomera River. The Boatworks to Southport, Queensland

Excellent Boatworks' courtesy car

We had the hire car for a few days enabling us to drive to Bunnings (like B&Q) at Oxenford Shopping Centre and buy two essentials: a wet and dry vacuum cleaner and a 240v pedestal fan. The temperature soared to 30C.

Front cabin tool shed

To make more room inside Sal Darago, Jeremy put the mainsail back on. We collected the new prop shaft and gearbox coupling from Stella Marine. I drove to Woolworths, which is like M&S Food here, and bought provisions. The Boatworks provide an air conditioned liveaboards’ lounge, which has a microwave, kettle and fridge (plus a TV and comfortable seating). It was a godsend to us and our only escape from the heat until the sun went down.

Up the mast

Jeremy set about replacing the toilet seacock followed by sanding down the old antifoul paint using the vacuum cleaner to collect the dust. Our original B&D sander packed up necessitating another trip to Bunnings. We met Peter and Nicky from the World Arc and learned that they have a Westerly Pageant back in the UK.

Essential new fan

I’ll briefly list the main jobs carried out over the next 7 days: prepare stern prop shaft housing for new prop shaft; continue sanding down SD’s bottom; do 3 loads of laundry using the on-site facilities; hang curtains; check grab bag; fit new prop shaft; service cockpit drain seacocks. The best news of all was that Jeremy found a way to unseize the Blakes seacock on one of the cockpit drains by using the principle of leverage ie an aluminium pole from a broken boathook with a large adjustable spanner attached. With this he was able to reach under the stern berth, turn the handle on the seacock and remove the cone for servicing. Further jobs included finishing the antifouling; painting the decks and roof; shopping; stowing, labelling and logging all food products; checking the horseshoe lifebuoy lights; finding and stopping the ingress of water into one of the stern lockers. It was a cockpit seat drain pipe, which had become detached from the through-hull fitting.

New anti-foul

The list continues: check the blocks at the top of the mast; service anchor windlass and winches; check fairleads and cleats; check instruments. The depth sounder screen had gone black and was barely readable. Check and top up batteries; check Hydrovane mountings; put on jackstays; lift spinnaker poles on board; check dinghy and paddles; go shopping using one of The Boatworks’ courtesy cars; wash the topsides and enjoy the rain. There was thunder and lightning and a cooler temperature of 28C.

On the way to the water

Launch day was Wednesday 11^th December. Jeremy paid the boatyard bill and we spent a night on a pontoon berth. We filled our tanks and bottles with drinking water and did a last load of laundry. There were no leaks from the new seacock or prop shaft.

Impressing the neighbours

We left The Boatworks the next day and motored a few hundred yards to a fuel dock where we filled up with diesel. The next two nights were spent on anchor in the Coomera River as we made our way to Southport on the Gold Coast. Here we experienced a once in a 100 year storm. We were on anchor and I had just made lunch. I noted that the wind had risen to 17 knots. After a few bites of lunch all hell broke loose. A thunder storm began with fork lightning and wind gusts up to 30 knots. The anchor dragged. Jeremy started the engine and we avoided hitting a motor cruiser. I took the helm while Jeremy weighed our anchor but I had to quickly go out of gear as there was a length of rusty chain with a long line attached on our anchor and it was close to wrapping itself round our propeller. Once it was all on SD’s newly painted decks I could motor into deeper water.

Rusty chain and rope

Jeremy sent me below to eat my fairly cold lunch while he steered up the deep water channel. Then the rain started – BIG drops. The wind rose. Jeremy saw 50+, 60+ and 85 knots on the wind instrument! Visibility was almost nil. SD heeled and gravy spilled. Glasses were wedged in the sink to keep them upright. Jeremy was being stung by the rain and needed a jacket. The lightning was very close and Jeremy got an electric shock from SD’s wheel. He managed to drop the anchor just outside the channel as the wind abated and came below to eat his stone cold lunch. Oh the joys of sailing and we were still in the river!

Goodbye Southport

Later, Jeremy replaced the damaged depth sounder with our old Stowe depth sounder and we started to dry out the bedding in the stern cabin. The rain had been driven through old, cracked sealant round the stern hatch so Jeremy stripped this off and resealed. We learnt that the Conservative Party led by Boris Johnson had won the UK election with a big majority. It looks like the UK will leave Europe on 31^st January 2020.

Home for a While

We have come to the end of a three month stay in the UK. So, what have we been up to apart from tidying the garden and watching the telly!

Just a few days after arriving back from Australia, we were on our way to the Isle of Man for my sister, Sara’s marriage to Geoff. Our daughter, Emily, came with us. It was a lovely day. The wedding was held at the historic St Peter’s Church in the village of Cregneash, followed by a Reception at Port Erin Golf Club.

Geoff, Sara, Pat, Kathy and Mum in front

I stayed with my sister, Pat, for a week visiting my Mum everyday and seeing the newly weds before they left the island for their honeymoon in Cyprus.

Ellie and Sophie

Back home in Suffolk, it was wonderful to catch up with the fast-growing grandchildren, Ellie and Sophie and their parents, Emily and Ben, plus Tess the dog.

Gavin, Jeremy, Martha and Eileen

In October, we went to the island of Mull for a week’s holiday. On the way north, we had lunch in South Yorkshire with Jeremy’s brother, Ritchie and his wife, Catherine. Continuing our journey, we spent two nights with Jeremy’s middle brother, Gavin and his wife, Eileen. We were joined on our second evening by our great niece, Martha, who had recently started medical training at Newcastle University.

Kathy on Aros Pier, Tobermory

The rain began in the north of England and increased in intensity by the time we reached Tobermory. Despite the rain, we still enjoyed several rather damp walks, catching up with friends and watching a number of starts of legs of the annual Mull Rally.

Jeremy at Loch an Tor, Mull

November was soon upon us beginning with a bonfire party at Em and Ben’s house. A severe weather warning meant the party had to be deferred by one day. About 40 adults and their children enjoyed eating hot dogs, while watching the fireworks and admiring the bonfire.

Further fireworks and inferior hot dogs were enjoyed a few days later at the firework display at Ellie’s school.

 

Mid November saw me return to the IOM, to see my sisters and my Mum. Once again the week was spent taking Mum out, catching up with relations and spending time with friends.

Westbank Reunion

One week before our return to Australia, we drove up to Lancashire for a reunion of Jeremy’s form from his Westbank School days of 32 years ago. It was amazing to hear clear and largely positive memories from the ex-pupils.

All that remained back home were sad goodbyes to the Suffolk family, packing, closing up the house, collecting the hire car and driving to London Gatwick Airport for our Chinese Airlines flights to Brisbane, Australia. Two days later, we arrived in Oz, collected another hire car and drove about 50 miles to The Boatworks. Sal Darago was in the work yard, the temperature was about 30C and we were tired out.

Preparing SD's bottom

Another sailing adventure begins, but first the hard work of preparing the boat for the sea must be done. Watch this space.

My apologies for the different sizes of photos. Jeremy's new laptop does not have Microsoft Picture Manager, so I am using Paint to resize the photos - not always successfully.